1983. Struggling college student Samantha Hughes (an excellent and appealing portrayal by Jocelin Donahue) takes a high-paying gig looking after an elderly woman in a big old house located deep in the woods on the same night a lunar eclipse is occurring. Naturally, something sinister is afoot in said house.

Writer/director Ti West relates the absorbing story at a deliberate pace, offers a bang-up flavorsome evocation of the 80's period setting (the whole funky 80's aesthetic is spot-on right down to the clothes, music, and hairstyles), takes time to develop the hugely personable main character, adroitly crafts a supremely spooky and unsettling atmosphere that's rife with dread, tension, and unease, and pulls out the harrowing stops for the freaky, gruesome, and terrifying climax. The topflight cast rates as another substantial asset: Donahue radiates tremendous charm and vitality in the lead, Tom Noonan and Mary Woronov are perfect as the eccentric owners of the house, Greta Gerwig contributes a delightful turn as Samantha's spunky gal pal Megan, AJ Bowen makes a strong impression as brutish lackey Victor, and Dee Wallace has a nifty small part as a friendly landlady. Both Eliot Rockett's rough-hewn shadowy cinematography and Jeff Grace's gracefully shivery score are smack dead on the money. But it's the artful way West plays the slow game with a welcome emphasis on mood and people over excess gore and cheap scares that makes this frightfest so chillingly effective and satisfying.